


A Little Taste of Home

by oopsgingermoment



Category: Horizon: Zero Dawn (Video Game)
Genre: Aloy is the product of artificial insemination, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Domestic Bliss, Established Relationship, F/M, Hindu!Avad, Indian food, Just a Couple of Idiots, but I made a promise to a friend and I'm keeping it, was going to establish this AU before bringing in one shots
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-03
Updated: 2020-08-03
Packaged: 2021-03-05 19:14:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,649
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25680400
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/oopsgingermoment/pseuds/oopsgingermoment
Summary: Aloy settles into her role as Avad's long-term girlfriend and decides to fulfill a secret wish.
Relationships: Aloy & Avad (Horizon: Zero Dawn), Aloy/Avad (Horizon: Zero Dawn)
Comments: 9
Kudos: 27





	A Little Taste of Home

**Author's Note:**

  * For [VidalsQueen](https://archiveofourown.org/users/VidalsQueen/gifts).



> It's been... a while. I know. Here's what's been going on:  
> -Completed a compact summer semester  
> -Had COVID-19 and came out more annoyed with life than ever  
> -Went to Universal Studios' Wizarding World of Harry Potter for the first time  
> -Got rid of half our stuff in the garage  
> -Triggered the bone fusion in my neck and jacked up my hands  
> -Started drawing  
> BUT this fic has been more or less in the works long before this, and despite all this, I finally completed it. This is for you, Trin. I hope you enjoy it. :)

City traffic is a bitch, which is why Aloy decided to burn some calories and walk. She could call a cab on the way back when she had too many grocery bags to carry back home. Now, she was familiar with Midtown Manhattan, but she had only been to her destination once. “In 800 feet, your destination is on the right,” her phone chirped, and Aloy sighed in relief and picked up the pace, jogging down the sidewalk until the bright red letters of the Little India Market sign came into view. Aloy promptly checked her watch as she slowed into the parking lot. Avad wasn’t due to come home until around six o’clock. She had plenty of time to do this.

“Okay, here we go,” Aloy mumbled, slowing back down to a walk and slipping inside the shop. It was perfectly quiet with only a handful of other customers mindfully selecting their produce, and it made Aloy painfully aware she was the only white person in there. She cleared her throat awkwardly and whipped out her list, tapping her pen against her thigh. It was a long list, but dammit, she was going to do her best. Thankfully, Avad had all the spices needed at home already except for a few, so Aloy figured she could get those first.

Aloy grabbed a cart before hunting down the spice section. A swift skim of the list prompted her to grab saunf, asafoetida, and some desperately needed turmeric. After that, she began browsing around the rest of the market, grabbing what she needed as she went. Some items were easier to find than others, and she had to ask for help a couple times, but in the end she managed to check off her entire list. Triumphant, she checked out her cart, hailed down a cab, and loaded its trunk with her groceries. Aloy was riddled with anxious energy, but she didn’t let it show on her face as she slid into the taxi’s backseat. The driver was nice enough, having helped her load the trunk and offering small talk to take her mind off things.

Avad had been homesick lately. She could tell every time he called his brothers or video-chatted with one of his cousins. The fluid Telugu would roll off his tongue with simple familiarity, or the more guttural Turkish dancing in conversation with his maternal brethren. Aloy would daresay she liked them both better than English, a fact she had yet to confess to her boyfriend. She’d never hear the end of it. Still, the thought made her smile to herself. She was  _ giddy _ . It’s been too long since she last did something for him. Classes were being draining as hell and her new manager at work was a dick, but enough of the excuses. She was going to make her man some dinner.

Or at least set the kitchen on fire in the process.

Aloy didn’t let the thought bother her as she lugged all the grocery bags up to the top floor in one trip. Erend would be so proud after all the pull-ups she’d busted her ass off doing in the gym. She paid the cab and hopped up the staircase, shutting her door and quickly placing everything in the kitchen cabinet. The redhead scrolled through her calendar. This was going to take a couple tries. She’d never cooked dal or roti by herself before, the curry was intimidating, and she sure as hell didn’t share Avad’s taste buds. “Dammit,” Aloy mumbled to herself, tapping her nails on the kitchen countertop. The bread was going to be the easiest thing on the menu, but Aloy was a Sobeck, and the Sobecks were always up for a new challenge.

That first day after shopping, Aloy merely watched YouTube videos on repeat when one particularly gnarly essay gave her writer’s block. She watched them again on her lunch break at work. She kissed Avad good morning and good night without a single hint of her plans, even when they made their usual meal plans together the following Sunday. It was hard to keep anything from him. Avad had the sort of presence that made you soften, and the pair of them had a strict no-lying policy. But by God, those big brown eyes were impossible to say no to….

It was why Aloy got excited the following week when Avad had poked his head out from the spare bedroom where his office was set up, reading glasses perched adorably on his nose, and told her that he was going to be late for dinner Friday night. “David wants another meeting about off-campus trips for our AP students. I don’t get why though. I thought we covered that last month. It’s not like we can afford trips to the Met or something,” he lamented, the last part muttered under his breath. Aloy tried not to sound too elated, but staff meetings meant they usually ordered pizza.

“I mean, if you could, you would,” Aloy pointed out, waving her pen as she talked with her hands. Avad may have stashed away his ridiculous allowance into his savings long before he’d ditched London, but he would never use it on Met tickets. His ridiculous teacher’s salary barely put a dent in his student loans. “All right, I’ll have the usual waiting for you when you get home.”

“Thanks, love.”

Friday morning arose in its usual way with morning kisses, a communal breakfast, and waves good-bye as Avad drove off to work while Aloy set up shop for homework on a blissful day off campus. She did her duties, typed up some emails, and texted Nakoa before getting down to business in the kitchen. Her friend had previously offered a helping hand, but this was something that Aloy wanted to do on her own. Avad had shown her a dime a dozen how to make the roti, and they’d done multiple types of dal together. That was easy enough. Tindora would be the challenge. Curry was new too. Well, newer.

“Okay, Aloy. You got this.” She bounced on the balls of her feet. The speakers quietly played one of her favorite bands as she got to work yanking out just about every bowl and measuring instrument the kitchen possessed. Her heart pounded heavily. It wasn’t necessarily the fear of messing up the recipes that Aloy was worried about, it was disappointing Avad. She knew he would make a brave face for her sake, but God, if she messed this up, it’d be a defeat she would require a long recovery from.

The roti burned the first round, and the second round of curry somehow still didn’t have enough spice that Aloy felt Avad would like (a decree determined only after a tall glass of milk, because  _ holy shit that’s hot  _ but Avad likes it _ hotter _ ). The dal was fine, but it needed to be better than fine. Miraculously, it was the tindora that came out fantastic each time. Aloy quickly checked her phone. Nakoa and Talanah both checked to make sure the apartment complex hadn’t burnt down in their absence while Avad was just now heading into his staff meeting. Perfect. She had plenty of time to get this done. Third time’s the charm, right? She could mourn the imperfect, uneaten dishes sitting in the trash later.

Paranoia prompted Aloy to check her phone periodically, dashing between the stove and the counter in intervals in order to see if Avad was on his way home yet. These types of meetings took a half-hour at best and an hour at worst. Aloy crossed her fingers for the former; there was  _ a lot _ of food on the stove. She didn’t want to do any reheating if she didn’t have to.

And then her mom rang.

Shit.

Aloy answered the call and set it on speaker. “Hi, mom,” Aloy greeted.

“Hey, you,” Elisabet’s smokey voice sang warmly. “Listen, I know we’re still a couple months out, but are you still planning on coming down for July 4? I wasn’t sure what your plans for the summer are.”

Stirring a bit of lime juice into the pot of rice, Aloy hummed, “Uh, I think Avad is traveling to Cairo for research on his dissertation, so I may visit you guys for a while during summer break. This city makes it impossible to hear myself think some days.”

Elisabet chuckled. “Oh, I understand that. Your dad and I made a bet about where you’d wind up after graduating.”

“You guys do whatever. I’ll still be able to go to sleep at night knowing mama has faith in me.”

“Gaia caters to you far too much.”

“Mama  _ feeds _ me too much, you mean. And now I’ve picked up the habit. You should see my kitchen right now.” Aloy’s eyes darted to the clock hanging in the tiny kitchen. A quarter past seven. Her fingers started tapping on the edge of the kitchen counter.

“Uh oh. Tell me all about it.”

“Not much to tell. Just the usual ‘my partner is anything but white and I want to cook them some dinner’ gimmick.”

Elisabet tsked knowingly. “Oh yeah, I remember those days. How’s that going?” she inquired.

Aloy briefly worried her bottom lip between her teeth as the timer on the microwave went off. As she rushed to turn off the gas, she continued. “Eh, it’s going. I’ve burned a few things—” Elisabet snorted, “—which are currently sitting in the trash, and now I’m just waiting for Avad to get him, which  _ could _ be any minute….”

“Don’t kill yourself doing this, honey. It’s hard cooking outside of your comfort zone. I should know. Your mom’s the most forgiving person on the planet, but I’ve made my fair share of cuisine faux pas in my time.” Aloy hummed as she listened. Lids were removed as she checked on the integrity of her dishes. Every single one was beautiful. Absolutely perfect. And the  _ smell _ . Her mouth stretched into a wide grin, her chest practically bursting with triumph.

“Mom, mom. Hold on. You’re not going to believe this: they all came out perfect. Oh my God.  _ I am a domestic goddess! _ ”

“I don’t know what you did, but that smells amazing.”

Aloy squeaked and whirled around. Avad’s head was poking into the kitchen, his token adorkable grin gracing his lips. “Mom, I gotta go!” Aloy all but yelled as she scooted across the small kitchen to end the call. The gentle plunk of Avad’s briefcase hitting the down triggered her to turn back around. She watched Avad close his eyes and inhale deeply. He looked… giddy. “I, uh, I made you dinner,” Aloy murmured nervously.

“It smells absolutely gorgeous. Reminds me of how my grandmum makes them.” He turned around, eyes sparkling excitedly. “I thought we were having pizza.”

Aloy laughed. “Uh, no. This took two weeks and three burnt dishes worth of planning. No way was I caving to the ease of delivery pizza.”

Avad smoothly scooped Aloy into his arms and kissed her cheek. “Well, I can’t say no to this. It’s a lot of food,” he pointed out, “but I’m starving and I smell dal.”

“You didn’t even give me time to plate it up. That’s not very nice,” Aloy jested, more than happy to steal a kiss from him. As usual, he was warm as the sun’s rays on an early summer’s day, smelling of his trademark designer cologne and a pinch of  _ him _ .

Avad’s reaction was a positive one. This was a good sign. Hopefully it stays that way. Aloy plated him up first, making sure he got a couple of roti to go with the rice, curry, dal, and tindora. She then plated her own before grabbing another glass of milk. _The things I do for love,_ she remarked humorously to herself. While she did this, Avad offered a prayer for the meal at his shrine before sitting down at the dinner table, practically vibrating with excitement.

It was extremely difficult for Avad to avoid laughing at Aloy’s hellbent attempt to suffer through the fiery spices in order to prepare the meal according to his personal palette. Bite. Chew. Swallow. Sip of milk. Repeat. For him, the heat level was precisely how he liked it. No milk or yogurt necessary. Still, being the supportive boyfriend that he was, he never wasted a moment to brush his fingers over her shoulder from time to time. His poor girl’s cheeks were flushed as red as her hair, but bless her, she was powering through it like a champ.

Once stuffed and internally sunburnt, Aloy crashed on the couch with a bowl of ice cream. Her feet rested in Avad’s lap as they casually watched the news on their small TV. Well, trying. Having previously recounted the dreaded meeting he’d had to contend with, Avad was now proceeding to relay the shenanigans his students had manifested that day. He loved those high schoolers dearly but the sheer madness they could come up with…. He couldn’t help but burst into laughter as he informed his girlfriend of the catfight that had ensued in an argument over some senior year boy from the varsity baseball team.

Their domesticity was familiar. A comfort. Aloy could have an absolutely shitty day, but as soon as she unlocked their apartment door and crossed the threshold, she felt safe. The slightly clashing interior decorating styles, Avad’s shrine, and her growing collection of plants were only some of the things that enveloped her in the warmth of their home. They were talking about getting a dog, or maybe even a cat. Every little thing added to a longer future together.

Setting aside her now empty bowl, Aloy shifted so that she could curl up in Avad’s lap. He sighed contentedly, one arm wrapped across her back while the other draped over her legs. “Hi,” she murmured, pressing her nose against his neck.

“Hi,” he echoed with a grin. “How’s your mouth?”

“It’ll survive. I’m more worried about the toilet in the morning.”

Avad guffawed loudly, a bellow that might easily annoy their habitually disgruntled neighbors. Aloy covered her hands in embarrassment. “Shall I leave out the emergency Pepto Bismol tonight?” he inquired once he was finally able to stop laughing.

“Yes please,” Aloy mumbled against her skin. She spread her fingers and looked through them. Her man was poking fun at her, but she could see genuine concern there too.

“We’ve got Imodium in the medicine cabinet too.”

“Thank you.”

“Peppermint is with the candy stash.”

Got it.”

“I’m just making sure my domestic goddess doesn’t self-implode on me.”

Aloy groaned loudly. “I can’t believe you had to hear that. Now you  _ and _ mom have something to blackmail me with,” she complained.

“For future reference, which mom was it again?” Avad inquired half-seriously.

“There is no way I’m telling you. All my parents will know by tomorrow and by then it won’t matter.”

Avad snorted and poked her in the ribs. “Allow me  _ a little _ fun with you,” he begged.

“No.”

Avad pouted comically, resorting to tickling to get an agreement out of her. Aloy squealed and planted her foot solidly on his chest and pushed him off. “Oh, you’ve done it now!” Within seconds she was standing; a game of cat and mouse ensued. The pair of them jumped over furniture and circled around each other like cats, striking whenever the window opened for them. This went on for several minutes, chock full of tickling and laughter until they wound up finally catching each other and collapsing onto the hard floor.

They stared at the ceiling, catching their breath. Instinct brought their hands intertwined. “I hate you so much,” Aloy bantered with a wide grin.

“I love you too, Aloy,” Avad whispered back, squeezing her hand.

Yeah. Nothing was better than this.

**Author's Note:**

> All right, first things first. Here are the three dishes Aloy made:  
> [Mango dal](https://www.indianhealthyrecipes.com/mamidikaya-pappu-mango-dal/)  
> [Tindora fry](https://www.indianhealthyrecipes.com/dondakaya-vepudu-recipe/)  
> [Curry](https://www.indianhealthyrecipes.com/chettinad-ridge-gourd-curry-beerakai-kura-heerekai-palya/)  
> Aloy and Avad's backstories will be explained in the full fic (whenever that happens *cringe*), but TL;DR Avad is South Indian and Turkish, a practicing Hindu, and a high school teacher working on a master's degree on the side. Aloy is a college student at NYU for engineering. Rost is her biological father but she grew up with two moms, Elisabet (biological mom, hence the artificial insemination thing in the tags) and Gaia. They will get a dog _and_ a cat, and it's going to be amazing. Yes, the weddings are already all planned out. This has been nearly two years of planning almost as soon as I started publishing The Sun and Moon. Come on guys, you know me.
> 
> Thank you for reading, everyone! It's good to be back. ^.^


End file.
